Chapter 8: The Warehouse of Lies
Daniel read the message three times.
“Absolutely not.””
I stood beside his desk.
“They have Thomas.””
“We don't know that.””
“They sent me a photograph.””
“Photographs can be manipulated.””
I pushed my phone toward him.
“Look at his hands.””
Daniel enlarged the image.
There was a dark mark around Thomas's wrist.
A red line.
It looked like a restraint injury.
Daniel's expression hardened.
“I'm contacting the police.””
“No.””
“Maya, someone has threatened your biological father.””
“Exactly. If we involve the police before knowing who has him, they could move him.””
“And if you walk into that warehouse alone, they could hurt you too.””
I stared at him.
“I've spent two years being told to stay quiet, stay home, and trust people who were lying to me. I'm done.””
Daniel leaned against his desk.
“Then we do this properly.””
He called Olivia and explained the situation.
Within twenty minutes, she had located the warehouse's registered owner.
It belonged to a company controlled by Eleanor Price.
The same woman connected to Reed Holdings.
We arranged to have the property monitored while Daniel prepared the legal paperwork needed to obtain access.
At eleven that night, Sophie arrived at the apartment with a backpack full of clothes.
“I heard everything,” she said.
I looked at her.
“Who told you?””
“Your aunt called me.””
I blinked.
“My aunt?””
“Your mother's sister. She found out what happened and contacted me.””
My mother's sister, Elizabeth, had barely been part of my life since the funeral.
Vanessa had always said she was selfish, bitter, and interested only in money.
Sophie pulled out her phone.
“She wants to speak with you.””
I answered.
“Maya?””
My aunt's voice was trembling.
“Oh, sweetheart.””
I hadn't heard that voice in years.
“Why didn't you come to the funeral?””
Silence.
Then she whispered, “Because your father threatened to have me arrested if I came near you.””
I sat down.
“What?””
“He told me your mother had left instructions that I wasn't allowed to contact you. I believed him for a while. Then I received a letter from Claire, but it arrived too late.””
“What letter?””
“She told me that if anything happened to her, I should look after you. She said Robert and Vanessa were becoming dangerous.””
I closed my eyes.
“Why didn't you fight for me?””
“I tried. I hired an attorney. But Robert showed me a document claiming you had voluntarily agreed to remain with him. He also had a medical report saying I was emotionally unstable.””
I felt sick.
“That's not true.””
“I know, sweetheart. I know.””
She began crying.
“I should have fought harder.””
For the first time in two years, someone from my mother's side of the family was telling me the truth.
I wanted to ask a hundred questions.
But one mattered most.
“Did you know Thomas was my biological father?””
Elizabeth went quiet.
“Yes.””
I closed my eyes.
“Everybody knew except me.””
“Your mother wanted to tell you when you turned eighteen. She was afraid Robert would react badly.””
“Did Robert know?””
“He knew before you were born.””
My stomach tightened.
“What happened?””
Elizabeth sighed.
“Claire was engaged to Thomas before she met Robert. Thomas was traveling constantly for work, and they had a terrible argument. They separated. A few months later, Claire discovered she was pregnant.””
“And Dad married her anyway?””
“Robert offered to raise you. He said he loved Claire and wanted to give her a stable family.””
“Why would he do that?””
Elizabeth hesitated.
“Because he wanted access to Thomas's business connections. Your mother was already building Carter Development Group, and Robert believed marrying her would give him a way into the company.””
I stared at the wall.
“So he never loved her?””
“I think he loved what she could give him.””
The words hurt more than I expected.
My mother had spent her life believing she could build a family with someone who eventually tried to destroy everything she loved.
Before ending the call, Elizabeth gave me another piece of information.
“There's a safe in the old warehouse, Maya. Claire told me about it years ago.””
“What is inside?””
“She said it contained the original documents proving who owned the company.””
I looked at Daniel.
“Do you know about this?””
He shook his head.
Elizabeth continued.
“Your mother told me Thomas had one key and she had the other. But I don't know what happened to Thomas's key.””
I remembered the brass key from Box 417.
It had opened the safe deposit box.
There was another small key taped beneath the photograph.
I had never noticed it.
I opened the leather folder and examined the photograph again.
There it was.
A tiny brass key hidden beneath the paper backing.
On its tag was a handwritten number.
219.
The warehouse unit.
The next morning, Daniel and I drove to the property with two officers and a court-authorized investigator.
The warehouse stood behind a row of abandoned industrial buildings.
Its metal shutters were rusted.
A faded sign hung above the entrance.
CARTER DEVELOPMENT ARCHIVES.
The investigator unlocked the outer gate.
Inside, dust covered everything.
Rows of filing cabinets lined the walls.
Old computers sat beneath plastic sheets.
And at the far end was a heavy steel door.
The number 219 was painted across it.
I inserted the key.
It turned.
The door opened with a metallic groan.
Inside was a small office.
A desk.
Two filing cabinets.
And a wall covered with photographs.
My mother appeared in nearly every picture.
Standing beside Thomas.
Signing contracts.
Holding my newborn self.
In one photograph, she was laughing while Thomas held me in his arms.
I touched the picture.
I had never seen that photograph before.
Daniel began examining the cabinets.
“There's a safe here.””
It was hidden behind a wooden panel.
I recognized the small brass lock.
The second key fit.
Inside were several folders, a sealed videotape, and a large black ledger.
The first folder contained company ownership records.
The second contained bank statements.
The third had my name written across it.
MAYA CARTER — FINAL BENEFICIARY.
I opened it.
The first document was a shareholder agreement.
It showed that my mother and Thomas had established a separate company years earlier.
I owned 60 percent of it.
Thomas owned 40 percent.
My mother had transferred her shares into a protected trust before her death.
But there was another clause.
If I was prevented from accessing the trust through fraud, coercion, or unlawful interference, an independent board could immediately suspend any executive involved.
I read the clause twice.
“Daniel, what does this mean?””
He examined the page.
“It means your mother anticipated exactly what has happened.””
I flipped to the final document.
It was dated two days before my mother died.
Her signature was clear.
Below it was a handwritten statement.
I am aware that Robert and Vanessa intend to take control of my estate. I have allowed them to believe their plan will succeed because I need them to reveal the people helping them.
I looked at Daniel.
“Allowed them?””
He nodded slowly.
“Claire may have been conducting her own investigation.””
Then I noticed the videotape.
A label was attached.
*PLAY ONLY AFTER THOMAS RETURNS.*
My throat tightened.
“Thomas was supposed to come back.””
Daniel picked up the tape.
“There may be a recording that explains everything.””
Before we could continue, a noise came from the warehouse entrance.
Footsteps.
Then a familiar voice.
“Maya?””
I turned.
Vanessa stood in the doorway.
She was holding a small pistol.
Behind her stood my father.
He looked at the folders scattered across the desk.
Then at the safe.
His face twisted.
“You weren't supposed to find this.””
Daniel moved in front of me.
“Put the weapon down, Vanessa.””
She laughed.
“Do you honestly think I'm afraid of you?””
My father stepped forward.
“Maya, give me the documents.””
I held the folder against my chest.
“No.””
His expression changed.
“I'm still your father.””
I looked at him.
“You stopped being my father when you helped throw me out.””
He flinched.
Vanessa raised the gun slightly.
“Give us the ledger.””
I stared at her.
“Why?””
She smiled.
“Because it contains the only evidence that can prove who really owns the company.””
I glanced at the ledger.
Then I noticed something strange.
The final page had been torn out.
Someone had already removed it.
I looked back at Vanessa.
“You've been here before.””
Her smile disappeared.
My father slowly turned toward her.
And in that moment, I realized something.
May you like
They weren't working together anymore.
They were afraid of each other.
